how do i write a section 37 report

Lancashire Children's Social Care Procedures Manual

Section 7 and Section 37 Reports

See also: Policy on Whether Cafcass or a Local Authority Should Prepare a Section 7 Report .

See additional local information in Local Resources :

• Section 7 and Section 37 reports - Interface work with CFW;
• Children and Family Wellbeing Service – Service Offer for Children, Young People and Families.

In November 2021, a link was added to local guidance in the Local Resources section.

• Section 7 Reports
• Section 37 Reports
• Section 8 Orders
• Family Assistance Orders

1. Section 7 Reports

• A court may ask the local authority for a welfare report when they are considering any private law application under the Children Act 1989;
• Background;
• History of Children's Services and other agency interventions;
• Profile of each child;
• Profile of each adult who is a party to the proceedings;
• The response of the family members to the current circumstances;
• A summary of the social worker's assessment;
• The social worker's comments regarding the welfare checklist;
• The social worker's comments regarding the 'no order' principle and its relevance to this case;
• The social worker's conclusions and recommendations, with reasons.
• The social worker should discuss the contents of the report with their manager. The recommendations should take account of the orders available to the Court under the Children Act 1989 - see Section 3, Section 8 Orders and Section 4, Family Assistance Orders . If there are any doubts about the recommendations that may be made to the Court, the social worker should seek advice from the Legal Department;
• As the local authority is not a party to the proceedings, the social worker will not be entitled to legal representation at the Court Hearing. However, as indicated above, legal advice may be sought from the Legal Department prior to presenting the report and appearing in court;
• The social worker responsible for preparing the report will generally need to be present at Court when the application is heard - and should be prepared to give evidence in support of the information contained in the report.

2. Section 37 Reports

• When, during any private law proceedings under the Children Act 1989, a question arises about the welfare of the child, and it seems to the court that it might be appropriate for a Care Order or Supervision Order to be made, then it will direct a local authority to undertake an investigation of the child's circumstances and report to the Court its findings. The timescale for completing this report is 8 weeks;
• If the local authority should consider applying for a Care Order;
• If the local authority should provide services or assistance for the child and her/his family;
• If the local authority should take any other action in relation to the child.
• The name of the child or children and their dates of birth;
• By when the report has to be completed;
• The name of the social worker responsible for the report.
• Profile of each adult who is party to the proceedings;
• The social worker's comments regarding the no order principle and its relevance to this case;
• The social worker's conclusions and recommendations, with reasons;
• The social worker should discuss the contents of the report with their manager. The recommendations should take account of the orders available to the Court under the Children Act 1989 - see sections below on Section 8 Orders and Family Assistance Orders. If there are any doubts about the recommendations that may be made to the Court, the social worker should seek advice from the Legal Department.
• If the conclusion is that the provision of services to the family is required, then a detailed description of those services will need to be added to the report, a Children's Plan will need to be drawn up and appended to the report and an indication of the timescales for the provision of services should be given;
• If the conclusion is to take no further action but review the family circumstances, then the report will need to inform the court when this review will take place;

Please note that on occasions, children may remain subject to multi agency Child Protection Plans following the conclusion of private court proceedings depending on the circumstances of the case. Parents and children will always be explicitly informed as to the reason for these plans.

3. Section 8 Orders

• A person entitled to apply;
• A person who has obtained leave of the court to make an application;
• The court considering that an order should be made although no application has been made.
• Any parent or guardian of the child;
• Any person who holds a Child Arrangements Order.
• Child Arrangements Order - specifies whom the child is to see and details the type of contact they will have with that person ;
• Prohibited Steps Order - prohibits certain steps (as specified in the order) from being taken by a parent in carrying out their parental responsibilities without consent of the court, for example an Order can be made to prevent a parent taking the child abroad on holiday where there is reason to believe a child will not be returned to the UK after the holiday ;
• Child Arrangements Order - details where the child should live ;
• Specific Issues Order - directs those carrying out their parental responsibilities in relation to a specific aspect of the child's care, for example in relation to where the child should be educated where there has been a dispute as to the child's school .

4. Family Assistance Orders

• The court can make this type of order in any family proceedings;
• The order is seen as a short-term solution to help the child overcome the difficulties of the separation or divorce of her/his parents. No order shall last longer than 6 months;
• Befriend (where appropriate) any person named in the order.
• Any person with whom the child is living;
• Anyone who holds a Child Arrangements Order;
• It is satisfied that the circumstances of the case are exceptional;
• It has obtained the consent of every person to be named in the order other than the child.
• The court may also order that those named in the order are to keep the local authority informed of any changes of the child's address;
• The local authority agrees; or
• The child lives within the area.

If the local authority believes that the arrangement is unsatisfactory, or not in line with the Court Order, the matter should be returned to Court.

Pls . Contact us Via the Enquiry Form

What is a section 37 report in children care matter.

Section 37 of the Children Act 1989 empowers the court to give directions to the local authorities to conduct investigations into the circumstances of a child. The Court can exercise this power in private law proceedings under Children Act 1989.

During a family proceeding, if the court finds that the welfare of a child is in question, the Court may consider the appropriateness of issuing a Care Order or Supervision Order and in order to facilitate the proper assessment of the circumstances of the concerned child for whose favour a care order or a supervision order may be made, the court may order for an investigation by and require a report from a specified local authority under the provisions of Section 37 of the Children Act 1989. An investigation under this provision is subject to statutory time limits. In pursuance of such an order by the court, the concerned local authority should investigate and submit a report within eight weeks to the court. Such a report is commonly known as the Section 37 Report under Children Act 1989. An order under section 37 may commonly be preferred in cases involving child custody and child contact arrangements.

When should the Court a Section 37 Report?

This mechanism to investigate the child’s circumstances should be used as a last resort. The Court should not order a Section 37 Report if there is no reason to make a care or supervision order in a purely private law proceeding. The Court’s power under Section 37 should not be used simply to bluff, or put pressure on, recalcitrant parents.

The first prerequisite to making an order for investigation under section 37 is that the proceedings should be any family proceedings in which the welfare of the child is in question. Section 8(3) of the Children Act 1989 provides the statutory meaning of the term ‘family proceedings”.

The said section states that “family proceedings” means any of the following proceedings

(a) under a High Court’s inherent jurisdiction relating to children; and

(b) under the enactments mentioned under section 8(4) which are Parts I, II and IV of Children Act 1989, Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, Schedule 5 to the Civil Partnership Act 2004, Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1976, Adoption and Children Act 2002, Domestic Proceedings and Magistrates’ Courts Act 1978, Schedule 6 to the Civil Partnership Act 2004, sections 1 and 9 of the Matrimonial Homes Act 1983, Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984, the Family Law Act 1996, sections 11 and 12 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, and Part 1 of Schedule 2 to the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 other than paragraph 3 of that Schedule.

However, family proceedings do not include proceedings on an application for leave under section 100 (3).

Secondly, the welfare of the child will be the court’s paramount consideration. The interests of the parents will become a concern of the court only to the extent that such interests have some bearing upon the welfare of the child. Therefore, if there is no question of child’s welfare, the court has no authority under section 37 to order an investigation by the local authority into child’s circumstances.

Thirdly, an order under section 37 can be made only if there is appropriateness to order a care or supervision order with respect to the child whose welfare is in question.

When can a court make a care or child supervision order?

According to section 31 (2), a court may only make a care or supervision order if it is satisfied with the following conditions:

(a) A significant harm is suffered by or is likely to be suffered by the child concerned, and

(b) the harm or likelihood of harm is in relation to two factors. Firstly, the child care which is given or likely to be given to him if the order were not made, not being what it would be reasonable to expect a parent to give to him. Secondly, attributable to the child’s being beyond parental control.

Who prepares a Section 37 Report?

According to section 37 of the Children Act 1989, the concerned local authority has to investigate into the child’s circumstance and prepare the report of such investigation. The local authority has no choice but to investigate once a court invokes section 37. The local authority has been defined under subsection 5. The court can give section 37 directions to a local authority only if it falls under any of the following categories;

a) the named local authority is an authority in whose area the concerned child is ordinarily resident, or

b) In cases where the child is not ordinarily resident in the area of a local authority, the local authority must be in an area where the circumstances which led to the court’s direction have occurred.

When a court order under section 37 is made, the named social worker should inform the Legal Department in writing about the name of the child or children and their dates of birth, the time limit within which the report has to be completed and the name of the social worker undertaking the responsibility for the report.

What directions and orders may be made in a Section 37 Report?

The local authority may investigate the child’s circumstances and suggest to the court whether care or supervisory order should be made. Upon the report, the court may make care or supervisory orders or any other direction the it may think appropriate.

The meaning of a care order is given under section 31(11) of the Children Act 1989 as an order under section 30 (1) (a). It also includes an interim care order made under section 38. A care order is subject to section 105 (1). Any child under the age of 17 can be made the subject of a care order, with the exception of a 16-year-old who is married.

Similarly, a supervision order is an order under section 30 (1) (b) and also includes an interim supervision order made under section 38. According to section 31(1), an order putting the child under the supervision of a designated local authority is called a supervision order. The legal provisions governing the ‘supervision’ is partly enumerated under section 35 and partly under Schedule 3 of the 1989 Act. Under Section 35, a supervisor under a supervision order should advise, assist and befriend the supervised child. Since the terms such as advise, assist and befriend are not defined or regulated by the Act, the social worker in such instances does have almost unlimited discretion in carrying out his duty of supervising the child.

As provided under section 38 of the Children Act, 1989 court is empowered to make an interim care order or if required an interim supervision order where an order for investigation is made under section 37. While making such interim care order or an interim supervision order, the court should take into account the grounds provided under section 31(2) which are mentioned hereinabove.

What is in a section 37 Report?

The report should have detailed about the background of the matter and the legal proceedings. It should mention the history of Children's Services and other agency interventions in the matter till then. The profile of each child should be clearly provided. The Report should contain the profile of each adult who is a party to the present proceedings. The response of the resident family members (or thise with parental responsibility) to the current circumstances must be recorded.

The Report should give a summary of the social worker's assessment regarding the circumstances of the children. The social worker must provide his / her considerations regarding the welfare checklist as in Section 1 Subsection 3 of the Children Act 1989. The social worker's may consider the no order principle, and if the social worker thinks that there should be no order by the court, then this must be recorded with justifiable reasoning. The social worker should give conclusions and recommendations with reasons.

The most important consideration of the local authority who prepares the Report is the welfare of the children. The object of a Section 37 Report is to assess whether any protective order should be made by the court considering the circumstances of the concerned child. While undertaking the investigation under a Section 37 order, the concerned local authority should keep in mind the following questions:

1. Whether the local authority should apply for a care order or for a supervision order with respect to the child?

2. Whether the local authority should provide services or assistance for the child or his family?

3. Is it necessary to take any other action with respect to the child?

The concerned local authority is required to inform the court in case where they decide to not to apply for a care order or supervision order. They should also record their reasons for arriving at such conclusion. Furthermore, they should provide the details regarding any service or assistance which they have provided, or intend to provide, for the child and his family. If they have taken or propose to take any other action with respect to the child, they should also inform the same to the court.

Moreover, the local authority should consider the appropriateness to review the case at a later date if, after investigation or review, they decide to not to apply for a care order or supervision order. Where the authority finds reason for such a future review of the case, the date on which that review is to begin should be thereby determined.

Is a Section 37 Report Confidential?

The Report under section 37 contains a considerable amount of confidential information of the child concerned, his/her parents and other relevant people. The Report is not conclusive material until the court confirms the same. The local authority can only comment on the circumstances of the child or suggest protective orders.

The final authority to decide the issues conclusively is the court itself. Therefore, any disclosure of the information contained in the Report to the public would amount to irreparable injury to the reputation of the child and his/her family members. Furthermore, the family proceedings are purely private proceedings of which details are not made available publicly.

It is inevitable to maintain confidentiality in Family Law matters. It is essential to safeguard the privacy of those who turn to the court for protection or for the resolution of intimate family disputes. Hence, the confidentiality of the information entailed in the Report as a result of the investigation under section 37 order must be kept by the local authority concerned.

Plesae do NOTE that this article is NOT legal advise and should NOT be treated as Legal advise.

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Section 7 and Section 37 Reports

SCOPE OF THIS CHAPTER

This policy applies when a court directs the Children's Trust to produce a report under section 7 or section 37 of the Children Act 1989:

• Section 7 applies when a court is considering a question with respect to a child under the Children Act. The court may instruct CAFCASS or the Local Authority/Trust to arrange for an officer to report to it on specified matters relating to the child's welfare;
• Section 37 applies in any family proceedings in which a question arises with respect to the welfare of a child. If it appears to the court that it may be appropriate to make a Care Order or a Supervision Order it may direct the Local Authority/Trust to investigate the child's circumstances.

In August 2023, this chapter was amended in line with the ADCS /CAFCASS Policy on whether Cafcass or a local authority should prepare a section 7 report .

1. When Should the Order for a Section 7 Report come to the Trust?

Under section 7 of the Children Act 1989, in private law proceedings courts can direct either Cafcass or a local authority to report on the welfare of a child. This is a decision of the court, and while representations can be made to the court about which agency is best placed to advise on the child's circumstances, views and wishes, the direction can only be amended by the court. Until the court has confirmed that an amendment has been made, the original order stands.

Most requests for section 7 reports are directed to Cafcass, but it may be appropriate for the Trust to prepare the report if they have had substantial recent involvement with the child. The circumstances under which the local authority should be ordered to complete the report are outlined in the ADCS /Cafcass Policy on whether Cafcass or a local authority should prepare a section 7 report .

The court should be advised to order the local authority to complete the section 7 report if:

• A child is the subject of an open and active statutory social work case with a local authority; or
• In the last 12 weeks, before the section 7 is ordered, there has been a statutory social work assessment of a child's welfare in accordance with the Children Act 1989 (sections 17 or 47); or
• In the last 12 weeks, before the section 7 is ordered, the child has been the subject of a child in need or child protection plan.

If none of the above apply, then the court should be advised to order Cafcass to complete the section 7 report. It is important for the court to note that once the local authority completes and files the section 7 report and is awaiting a court date, it will not hold the case open and active.

Whether Cafcass or a local authority are directed to prepare the report, each agency is able, pursuant to Rule 12.75 of the Family Procedures Rules 2010, to provide the other agency with all the relevant information they hold to ensure that the court has a complete picture.

Where Cafcass is recommending that a local authority prepares a section 7 report, Cafcass should first discuss this with the allocated local authority social worker and/or the first line manager.

When an application is made, the court will instruct CAFCASS to make safeguarding checks. CAFCASS will contact the Trust CASS, who will advise them whether the child is known to the Trust. If the child is known, they will send a form to the appropriate team – this form must be completed and returned immediately, as it is the means by which cases that should be directed to the Trust are identified.

The court will sometimes order the Trust to provide a letter or information from the files or, in urgent cases, for the social worker to attend court. These orders will be processed by the Court Business Support Unit, who will forward them to the allocated social worker or, if the case is unallocated, to the relevant team manager. The social worker or team manager will respond directly to the court.

2. Receiving a Direction for a Section 7 Report

Directions to provide a section 7 report will initially be processed by the Court Business Support Unit. This is an administrative service only – if practice or legal questions arise, the social worker should raise them with the team manager.

If the case appears unsuitable for the Trust to produce the report, the court business support worker will send a letter to the court asking for the request to be re-directed to CAFCASS.

If the case is currently allocated to a social worker, the court business support worker will send copies of all court documentation and a covering memo to the social worker and the team manager;

In all other cases (those which are suitable for the Trust but not currently allocated to a social worker), the court business support worker will

• Send all court documentation and a covering memo to the Children's Advice and Support Service (CASS); and
• Note on the file that the case was unallocated at the time of request, so an extension may be necessary.

The team manager will allocate responsibility for the report to a social worker, and will notify the court business support worker of the name of the responsible social worker. If it is unlikely that the court deadline can be met, the team manager must inform the court business support worker immediately.

The court business support worker will send letters to the court and to the parties in the case giving details of the allocated social worker.

3. Preparing a Section 7 Report

The court directions should be specific about the issues to be addressed in the report. The social worker should ensure that s/he is clear about what is required – if the court has specified that certain matters should be dealt with in the report, then the report produced must focus on these issues.

There is an expectation that the social worker who prepares a section 7 report will be aware of, and will fully take into account, any statutory guidance relevant to the issues in the case. Failure to do so may lead to a wasted costs order against the Trust.

Section 7 reports are generally requested when there is disagreement about who a child should live with and have contact with. The social worker preparing the report should therefore see the child with each person for whom the question of residence or contact arises. S/he should also see the child alone unless it seems inappropriate to do so, and should note any views or wishes expressed by the child and attempt to form an opinion as to whether these views are spontaneous or the result of pressure from any adult.

The social worker may draw up the Section 7 report – there is a template for this. The court will not accept an assessment for this purpose, but a recent 47 assessment can be referenced or exhibited to the Section 7 report.

The social worker must explain the contents of the report to the child, particularly the recommendations and the account of the child's views, as far as is appropriate to the child's age and understanding.

If problems arise and the report will not be ready by the court deadline, the social worker must alert the team manager immediately. The team manager will write to the court asking for an extension.

If, in the course of the investigation, the social worker feels that action should be taken under the child protection procedures, s/he must immediately consult the team manager and, if section 47 enquiries are initiated, notify the court of this. The section 7 investigation and the section 47 enquiries will run side by side. The court will expect to be kept informed of the progress of the assessment, and the child protection conference should consider whether making one or more section 8 orders would address the child's need for protection.

4. Filing a Section 7 Report

The court will identify a date by which the report must be filed. Five days before this date, the court business support worker will contact the social worker to ask for the final version. The social worker will complete the standard front cover sheet and add it to the report before sending two copies to the Court Business Support Unit.

The court business support worker will file the report with court with a covering letter requesting information about the date of the final hearing and whether the social worker will need to attend court.

The court business support worker will:

• Serve a copy of the report on all parties in the case with a covering letter; and
• Send a stamped copy to the social worker with a covering memo giving the final hearing date (if this is available).

It is not normally necessary for the social worker to attend court, but the court may direct that they do so. Note that Legal Services do not attend court to support the social worker.

5. Section 37 Reports: Legal Duties

On receiving a direction under Section 37, the Trust must investigate the child's circumstances and decide whether to:

• Apply for a Care Order or for a Supervision Order; or
• Provide services or assistance for the child or for his/her family; or
• Take any other action.

This decision must be made with reference to the Right Help, Right Time Indicators.

If the Trust, after investigating, decide not to initiate care proceedings, it must inform the court in writing of:

• The reasons for taking this decision;
• Any service or assistance which it has provided or intends to provide for the child and her/his family;
• Any other action which it has taken, or intends to take, with respect to the child.

The court may give directions setting a time by which the report must be filed. In the absence of such directions, it must be filed within 8 weeks of the date on which the direction to investigate was issued.

6. Receiving a Direction for a s37 Report

On receiving a direction to provide a section 37 report, Legal Services will send a memo with the court papers to the appropriate team. This will state the date by which the Trust must file the report with the court. The report must be given to Legal Services at least five working days before this date. The team manager must notify Legal Services as soon as possible about any anticipated difficulty in complying with the filing date.

On receiving the direction, the team manager will allocate responsibility to a social worker and notify Legal Services of the name of the allocated worker.

The social worker should:

• Study any documents served with the directions and ensure that s/he understands their significance;
• Consider any directions regarding the investigations to be carried out; and
• Decide whether it is possible to complete the necessary work before the date set for reporting back to the court. If it is unlikely that investigations will be complete by that date, the social worker must discuss the situation with Legal Services as soon as this is known, as an application will have to be made to the court for an extension of time.

A social worker preparing a Section 37 report does not have an automatic right to read all the reports filed with the court and it may be helpful to seek directions from the court allowing the worker to see any relevant reports that have been withheld.

There is an expectation that the social worker who prepares a section 37 report will be aware of, and will fully take into account, any statutory guidance relevant to the issues in the case. Failure to do so may lead to a wasted costs order against the Trust.

7. Making the Decision

The social worker and team manager will discuss the significance of the information collected, including the views of the children's guardian. They will decide whether the Trust should initiate care proceedings and, if not, what alternative action to take.

The court will not make an order based on the report: if the decision is that care proceedings should be initiated, an application must be made as set out in  Care and Supervision Proceedings and the Public Law Outline .

If the decision is that care proceedings should not be initiated, the team manager must decide whether the decision should be reviewed and, if so, when the review will begin and what form it will take.

8. The Section 37 Report

There is a template for a Section 37 Report. The report must be filed with the court by the date stated on the direction to investigate. If no date is stated, it must be filed within 8 weeks of the direction being issued. If it is unlikely that investigations will be complete by that date, the social worker must discuss the situation with Legal Services as soon as this is known, as an application will have to be made to the court for an extension of time. If the Trust fails to meet the time limit set, the court will make a Wasted Costs Order against it.

The social worker will sign and date the report and send a copy to Legal Services who will file it with the court. Care should be taken to ensure that the report arrives at Legal Services at least five working days before the court deadline.

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Section 7 and Section 37 Reports

SCOPE OF THIS CHAPTER

This policy applies when a court directs the Local Authority to produce a report under section 7 or section 37 of the Children Act 1989:

• Section 7 applies when a court is considering a question with respect to a child under the Children Act. The court may instruct CAFCASS or the Local Authority/Trust to arrange for an officer to report to it on specified matters relating to the child's welfare;
• Section 37 applies in any family proceedings in which a question arises with respect to the welfare of a child. If it appears to the court that it may be appropriate to make a Care Order or a Supervision Order it may direct the Local Authority/Trust to investigate the child's circumstances.

RELEVANT GUIDANCE

Policy on whether Cafcass or a local authority should prepare a Section 7 report (Cafcass)

Pan-Sussex Section 7 Template and Resource Pack offers further guidance.

In May 2023, a link was added in Relevant Guidance to the updated Policy on whether Cafcass or a local authority should prepare a Section 7 report (Cafcass).

1. When Should the Order for a Section 7 Report come to the Local Authority?

Most requests for section 7 reports are directed to CAFCASS, but it may be appropriate for the Local Authority to prepare the report if they have had substantial recent involvement with the child. In this phrase recent means within the last three months, and substantial involvement would include cases in which:

• The Local Authority has carried out an assessment;
• The Local Authority has carried out s47 enquiries;
• The child is the subject of a child protection plan;
• The child is a child in need and a social worker is the lead professional;
• The child or their siblings are looked after children;
• The child is the subject of a supervision order or a family assistance order directed to the Local Authority;
• There is a private fostering arrangement in place; or
• The application before the court has been made as a result of a recommendation by the Local Authority or with its support.

It may also be appropriate for the Local Authority to prepare the report if there has been no substantial recent involvement, but there are current significant allegations of abuse that meet the threshold for intervention.

The request should be directed to CAFCASS if:

• The Local Authority has had no current or recent involvement; or
• The Local Authority had substantial involvement, but the case was closed more than three months ago.

When an application is made, the court will instruct CAFCASS to make safeguarding checks. CAFCASS will contact Dudley MASH, who will advise them whether the child is known. If the child is known, they will refer to the appropriate team.

The court will sometimes order the Local Authority to provide a letter or information from the files or, in urgent cases, for the social worker to attend court. These orders will be processed and forwarded to the allocated social worker or, if the case is unallocated, to the relevant team manager. The social worker or team manager will respond directly to the court.

2. Preparing a Section 7 Report

The court directions should be specific about the issues to be addressed in the report. The social worker should ensure that they are clear about what is required – if the court has specified that certain matters should be dealt with in the report, then the report produced must focus on these issues.

There is an expectation that the social worker who prepares a section 7 report will be aware of, and will fully take into account, any statutory guidance relevant to the issues in the case. Failure to do so may lead to a wasted costs order against the Local Authority.

Section 7 reports are generally requested when there is disagreement about who a child should live with and have contact with. The social worker preparing the report should therefore see the child with each person for whom the question of residence or contact arises. They should also see the child alone unless it seems inappropriate to do so, and should note any views or wishes expressed by the child and attempt to form an opinion as to whether these views are spontaneous or the result of pressure from any adult.

The social worker may draw up the Section 7 report – there is a template for this in the Practice Guidance section. The court will not accept an assessment for this purpose, but a recent 47 assessment can be referenced or exhibited to the Section 7 report.

The social worker should explain the contents of the report to the child, particularly the recommendations and the account of the child's views, as far as is appropriate to the child's age and understanding.

If problems arise and the report will not be ready by the court deadline, the social worker should alert the team manager immediately. The team manager will write to the court asking for an extension.

If, in the course of the investigation, the social worker feels that action should be taken under the child protection procedures, they should immediately consult the team manager and, if section 47 enquiries are initiated, notify the court of this. The section 7 investigation and the section 47 enquiries will run side by side. The court will expect to be kept informed of the progress of the assessment, and the child protection conference should consider whether making one or more section 8 orders would address the child's need for protection.

3. Section 37 Reports: Legal Duties

On receiving a direction under Section 37, the Local Authority should investigate the child's circumstances and decide whether to:

• Apply for a Care Order or for a Supervision Order; or
• Provide services or assistance for the child or for their family; or
• Take any other action.

This decision must be made with reference to the Right Help, Right Time Indicators.

If the Local Authority, after investigating, decide not to initiate care proceedings, it should inform the court in writing of:

• The reasons for taking this decision;
• Any service or assistance which it has provided or intends to provide for the child and her/his family;
• Any other action which it has taken, or intends to take, with respect to the child.

The court may give directions setting a time by which the report must be filed. In the absence of such directions, it should be filed within 8 weeks of the date on which the direction to investigate was issued.

4. Receiving a Direction for a s37 Report

On receiving a direction to provide a section 37 report, Legal Services will send a memo with the court papers to the appropriate team. This will state the date by which the Local Authority should file the report with the court. The report should be given to Legal Services at least five working days before this date. The team manager should notify Legal Services as soon as possible about any anticipated difficulty in complying with the filing date.

On receiving the direction, the team manager will allocate responsibility to a social worker and notify Legal Services of the name of the allocated worker.

The social worker should:

• Study any documents served with the directions and ensure that they understand
• their significance;
• Consider any directions regarding the investigations to be carried out; and
• Decide whether it is possible to complete the necessary work before the date set for reporting back to the court. If it is unlikely that investigations will be complete by that date, the social worker should discuss the situation with Legal Services as soon as this is known, as an application will have to be made to the court for an extension of time.

A social worker preparing a Section 37 report does not have an automatic right to read all the reports filed with the court and it may be helpful to seek directions from the court allowing the worker to see any relevant reports that have been withheld.

There is an expectation that the social worker who prepares a section 37 report will be aware of, and will fully take into account, any statutory guidance relevant to the issues in the case. Failure to do so may lead to a wasted costs order against the Local Authority.

5. Making the Decision

The social worker and team manager will discuss the significance of the information collected, including the views of the children's guardian. They will decide whether the Local Authority should initiate care proceedings and, if not, what alternative action to take.

The court will not make an order based on the report: if the decision is that care proceedings should be initiated, an application should be made. If the decision is that care proceedings should not be initiated, the team manager should decide whether the decision should be reviewed and, if so, when the review will begin and what form it will take.

6. The Section 37 Report

There is a template for a Section 37 Report in the Practice Guidance Section. The report should be filed with the court by the date stated on the direction to investigate. If no date is stated, it should be filed within 8 weeks of the direction being issued. If it is unlikely that investigations will be complete by that date, the social worker should discuss the situation with Legal Services as soon as this is known, as an application will have to be made to the court for an extension of time. If the Local Authority fails to meet the time limit set, the court will make a Wasted Costs Order against it.

The social worker will sign and date the report and send a copy to Legal Services who will file it with the court. Care should be taken to ensure that the report arrives at Legal Services at least five working days before the court deadline.

Trix procedures

Only valid for 48hrs